The Guard and the Prisoner
by Bookbearer
Summary: The two strongest guilds in all of Earth Land have found themselves in a terrible battle. On one side stood the legendary light guild: 'Fairy Tail'. On the other stood the rebellious dark guild: 'Lady Legions'. What will happen when one of the members of the famous 'Lady Legions' is captured? And how does the pink haired man assigned to guard her effect her reason of escape? NALU!
1. Chapter 1

_Yes, I know I have yet to update a few others of my other stories-I'm getting there!-and school is just around the corner…But I have a really good feeling about this, and I'm going through with it. _

_Please tell me how you feel about this first chapter in the comments, I would really appreciate it! Thanks again:_

_-BookBearer _

* * *

_Prologue _

* * *

_Beautiful, wild flowers of crimson spread quickly through the long elegant walls, capturing everything thing in its path from the velvet curtains to the priceless photos and memories, and quickly twisting it into cold black ash. _

_The sound of constant flickering could be heard, yet the ravishing hues of deep scarlet moved though out the large estate quietly-the situation becoming ever more deadly. Thick black smoke loomed above and below the marble tiled ceiling and wood floors, shorting the air supply to a dangerous all-time low. _

_Sounds of cracking wood pierced through the silent air, and the fire alarm screamed loudly-awaking the residents and alerting the assistance that was needed. Floorboards creaked in agony, and support pillars from all around the estate came crumbling to the ground. _

_The continuous tapping of tiny feet against wood flooring was heard and a small, innocent child was running as fast as she could-for she knew her life depended on it. A flood of tears rushed down red cheeks and her brown eyes were swollen and wide with terror. Tiny bruised and blood stained arms were outstretched out in front of her and her left hand tightly clutched an important leather bag, clearly not letting it go anytime soon._

_Her blonde hair was stained with black ash and tarnished-flipping wildly behind her fragile body and the heart shaped sliver necklace around her neck went back and forth with every step she took. Her body shook violently at the scene that occurred just moments ago, the memory repeating itself over and over again. _

_Suddenly, a large chunk of debris from the ceiling came crashing down, the wood pieces shattering everywhere. Before she could react, she screamed in pain and agony and clutched her injured side tightly. A piece of the destroyed ceiling had come in contact with her, slicing through the soft skin right below her left side and right below her ribcage-for sure leaving a scar. _

"_There you are you little brat! Get your ass back here! Let's make this quick and easy-only one of us are going to die today…and it's not going to be me!" _

_At the sound of the loud, threating voice, the horrified girl manages to stand and run once again, looking for an exit. Her small body cried out in overwhelming pain and she ached and burned all over, because of the blaze. She coughed violently, the acrid smoke had gotten thicker and was burning inside her tiny lungs, breathing becoming more and more difficult with each step. _

_This kind of feeling wasn't meant for a child such as her age and it was a miracle that she hadn't collapsed in fatigue-her willpower to live was strong and well beyond her years. She used this to continue to move on, and to make it out alive. _

_Stopping to a halt, the young girl stopped and looked around-not seeing any more doors to run though. Her eyes widened in realization when she noticed the lonely window was the only possible way out now. Any thoughts of turning around was quickly ruled out when the loud footsteps of the attacker was approaching quickly. _

_Quickly moving towards the window and opening it, she takes a weary step over the edge, hissing in pain when her side cries out once more. Looking down, she noticed the blood was seeping out, and knew that was a bad sign. _

_A gun shot rang out through the air, and she knew that time was not in her favor. So gathering all her strength, she takes the second step out to the black rooftop, stumbling but quickly regaining balance. _

"_I don't mind if you fall to your death, but it's either that or I shoot you, Hun!" The sinister voice shouts from further inside, and laughs. "Or, you could hand over those keys and maybe I will let you live! We just need all the magic power we can get. After all, you don't want your pretty face eaten by the Tamashī no shūshū-ka right?" _

_Her stomach drops at the mentioning of that name, and she turns back around to the man chasing her, and her horror stricken face turns to a cold unrecognizable expression. He now stood at the entrance of the door, and the flames illuminated his ugly smile. _

_What he failed to realize was that in that moment something snapped inside the young girl, and she had become something that you didn't want to mess with. _

"_I-Is that what you're after?" Her brown eyes dilated in his direction, and flickered an evil red color. "Y-You hurt my parents for m-magic power?" Her tiny, bleeding fists clenched and her teeth were grounded together. _

_He frowned and shook off the momentary shock at her change of expression, a cocky smirk back on his face. "Well, they had the money we needed-we need ones like you…you possess powerful magic you know-" _

_He didn't to finish his sentence before the ceiling above him became unstable and started dropping pieces. He jumped back to avoid getting hit and she took this as a chance to escape. But before leaving, she got a good look at the man to remember his face-for she knew she was coming back for him in particular. _

_She then turns and without hesitation, jumps off the roof and aiming towards the bushes. Luckily, she landed with minuim injuries; her left leg only landing in an awkward position-but it wasn't as painful as her injury below her ribcage. _

_Shutting her eyes tightly together in pain, she struggles to stand and blinks her eyes rapidly when she felt lightheaded. Then quickly limping away from her home, her tears start to fall at the memories that she had lost-her parents, her home, the help-everything. _

_Turning around once more, she looks at her house for one last time. The red blaze had over taken the light tanned house and black smoke was pouring out though the windows. Everything was on fire. _

_Her mother's once beautiful garden was covered in flames, and her father's cars we're on the verge of explosion very soon-for they were also engulfed in flames. The sound of coming fire trucks were heard in the distance, and the little girl turned away. _

_Flames. _

_Tonight had been a life changing moment for the young girl-as it would be for any child. For in an instant, she had lost everything that she had. Everything was gone-she was now an orphan. She had nowhere to go. _

_For all everyone knows, the Heartfilla family is now gone. _

_And so is she. _

_Finding a clear space in the woods, she collapsed to the ground and just cried. The tears kept pouring out and her body shook. She cried out into the nothingness of the forest, and clenched her blackened blonde hair. Tonight was the night to mourn her loss and what she didn't know was that this would become an annual thing. _

_The night she had lost everything. _

* * *

_The tiny orphan slowly opened her eyes, and was awoken by a small shake. It had been days since she had known where she had been going-just pointless wondering for a while. _

_She squinted her eyes to see another girl around her age, smiling widely and sticking her hand out. She had strange blue hair, and large glasses, but overall she appeared to be a nice girl. _

"_Hey there! I was walking and I saw the strangest thing-you we're sleeping on the ground in the middle of the forest. I thought you we're dead, but then I saw you breathing-what are you doing here anyways?" _

_She only gets a saddened look on her face in response, and the blue haired girl immediately feels guilty. She rubs the back of her neck awkwardly, and slightly smiles."Uh, never mind that-I'm Levy Mcgarden!" _

_She hesitantly takes her hand and she helps her up. "I-I'm Lucy. Lucy Hear-I mean, Lucy Ashley." _

_Levy smiled at her newfound friend, but immediately gasps when she noticed her injuries. "Oh my god-you're hurt! Uh, here-you seem harmless, let me take you to back to the guild, we have some med kits."_

_Lucy was about to object before Levy silences her with a defiant shake of her head. "Uh, bup-bup! I'm not taking a no for an answer." _

_She took Lucy's arm and swung it over her shoulder, slowly matching her pace. "As long as you're not a guy and not a stupid Fairy-Tailer-you can come with. Besides, Erza would have my head if she knew I left again-but I have a good reason this time! I have you! We can be best friends! Oh and don't worry about 'fitting in'-the Lady Legions don't bite…much." She laughs, and for the first time, Lucy smiled too. _

"_Oh," and Levy adds, looking straight at Lucy with her eyebrows raised. "Since we are going to be best friends, I'm telling you straight up-you need a shower. Badly_!"

* * *

Yeah the next chapter will be longer. But that's Lucy's back story…but was that the WHOLE story?

I think not.

Oh and Lucy hates FIRE? *Cough cough* That's important… *Cough Cough*

And yes, I used Lucy Ashley from Edolas Lucy. Don't judge me, I'm not good with last names.

Anyways,

Review!

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-BookBearer


	2. Chapter 2

Okay, I just finished updating my other story and here's this one. Sorry if there are any spelling errors referring to _'Fairy Tail'_, my auto correct isn't working correctly. Just PM and tell me, and I'll fix them.

Also remember: In my story, the characters will have somewhat of a different personality depending on their life style. Not a major change in everyone, but there will definitely be some badass moments here and there.

-BookBearer

* * *

Chapter One

* * *

"Oi! Let's hurry it up, huh? I've got stuff to do!" The large man growled, resting on the nearby metal wall. He grabbed a piece off of the edge and shoved it in his mouth, chomping on it rather loudly.

"Well maybe if you would help us, we could go faster, Gajeel!" His orange haired companion barked back, picking up another piece of the broken and scattered blue lacrima mess. Lifting a rather large piece, he grunted and carried it towards the exit, back to the huge black truck.

He rolled his eyes in annoyance, raised his large hand and pointed his finger at him. "You're supposed to be fast, not brainless, Jet. So quit yapping and let's get going. Makarov needs us for some, 'important guild meeting' or something." Gajeel snarled at his guild mate.

"Could you guys stop bickering for a second?" Asked Droy, coming back from just dropping another piece of blue lacrima into the almost full truck. "We're almost finished here, and I want to go home."

Jet grumbled angrily in response, and Gajeel walked towards the door. "You're right," He agreed, his black boots clamping with each step that he took. "I'll start up the truck."

With that, he left the two of them in the building, picking up the remaining lacrima. As soon as Gajeel left, Jet sneered in his general direction, rolling his eyes as he did so.

"Remind me again why I'm here with him?" Jet asked and turned to Droy, picking up his final pieces. Sweat glistened on his forehead from the exhausting day's work and his back ached terribly.

"Because," Droy stated, not even looking up. "This mission pays 100,000 jewel, and we all need the money." He used the back of his hand to wipe the salty sweat off of his eyebrows, and glanced at Jet.

"And it was either us three, or Gray, Natsu, or Gajeel as a team…and we both know how that went last time. Fairy Tail has already enough bills and payments on our plate."

Jet huffed, but understood completely. The guild has had a bit of a money problem. Someone is always destroying something on a mission of some sort, and it comes straight out of the guild's pocket.

"That's probably what Makarov wants to talk to us about again." Jet responded, still rolling a large blue piece on its side. "Damn money problems." He cursed under his breath, picking up the final piece.

"What do you think Droy?" Jet asked him after a few minutes of struggling. The silence grew, and he didn't like it. "What's it going to be this time? Money problems? The council riding our asses again? Natsu destroying another town? Or those damned Lady-Leg-Losers?"

He snorted and laughed at his joke, turning around to Droy. "Remember the last time we faced those chicks?" His smirk faded and was replaced with a frown when he saw that he was alone. He turned around, and looked at the whole place, but Droy was gone.

"Damn it, Droy!" Jet growled, turning back around to pick up his lacrima. "Leaving me to finish the work again, eh? I knew it." He grumbled, and picked up the lacrima with a grunt.

Each step was harder than the last, seeing as this one piece was heavier than the rest. "Leaving me…this is the last time…ugh, I'll hang you for this Droy…why is this so heavy?...damn you!" He talked to himself, as he made his way to the exit.

Suddenly a sharp pain jabbed his backside and his body instantly went still. His breath got caught into his throat and he froze, his eyes widening to saucers. The lacrima dropped in his hands onto the hard ground with a shatter. Slowly, he dropped to his knees and fell onto his right side, unable to move his body. Panic began to set into his system as he started freaking out. His body was paralyzed. He tried moving, but to no avail. He tried to shift his body, he tried screaming, and yelling for help, but all that came out was a muffled groan.

Above him, a pair of dark blue boots stepped over his paralyzed body, and turned to face him. His attacker slowly bent down to their knees until they both we're at eye level. Hazel eyes met his black ones and his attacker raised their eyebrows. Strains of bright blue hair tricked down their face, as if it we're a silky curtain. Amusement danced around in their hazel eyes, and their lips peeled back into a stunning smile.

"Lady Leg Losers?" A high pitched voice asked, laughing at the question, standing up to her full height. "Seriously, that's the best you've guys got?" She put her arms on her hips, and she chuckled at the man lying helplessly below her.

Droy glanced up and examined his attacker.

She was a young woman, about 21, with a slender build, standing at a below-average height for her age. She showed off her long blue hair, with a slight purple hue, tied up with a red bandana around her head.

She wore a dark red dress that left her abdomen exposed and was linked by dark blue straps and pitch black bands on the sleeves. She also wore a golden necklace around her neck, with her purple guild symbol standing out proudly on her collarbone. Her dark attire was expected, (of course, keeping in mind which guild she belonged to), and the vicious smirk that was plastered on her face.

"Don't worry," She started, bending back down but turning around to reach into her raged satchel, digging around for something. "The effect will wear off in a few hours. I just can't have you alerting anybody that we're here, now can we?"

She snorts at her own little joke and finally pulls out a small, bugged-shaped device and held it up for the both of them to see. She turned the small piece of technology slowly, while Droy was left wondering what it was for.

"This," She started, "This is what I call the bee-have-atron 1320." Her lips peeled back into a smile, and eyes shined with admiration as she examined the piece of machinery.

"You know," She says after a few minutes, and reaching her hand down towards his shirt. "It's called the 'bee-have-atron' because it's in the shape of the insect, the bee. And the bees, bee-have, get it?" Slowly lifting up his shirt, her hazel eyes scan over his bare chest, looking for that right spot, chuckling slightly.

Her gaze sent goose bumps running up and down his spine and all throughout the rest of his body. His heart was beating a mile a minute and his thoughts were racing wildly through his brain. The members of the Lady Legions were known for their unkindly way of dealing with things, and he knew that he wasn't going to get out of this one without feeling any pain.

"I invented this one myself." She whispered, as her cold hands ran down his stomach. "It's not my best, I have many, many, more way beyond comparison to this one…But this one is my favorite." Her finger tips stop at the right spot she was looking for and her eyes lit up.

She reached for the small metal bee once again and slowly lowered it down to the right side of his stomach. When the cold metal touched his warm skin, he really then started to freak out and try to call out Gajeel or Jet's name. But it only came out as a silent mumble.

"G…Ga…Gajeel…" Came Droy's desperate whisper, but he was certain that no one heard him.

Levy pushed down the metal insect and its sharp 'stinger' latched onto his skin with a 'pop'. Droy cried out in pain, but it only sounded like a grunt. Her smile grew bigger as she slowly pushed his shirt back down, and looked straight in his eyes.

"I'm only going over this once, so listen here carefully; that stinger that's inside you right now, it lets out 100 volts of electricity into your body every time you let out some sort of emotion. Anger, sadness, joy, so on and so fourth. Every time it does electrocute you, it will intensify by 20 volts." She motions her head to behind her.

"You and you buddy, Jet was it? You two are connected." Droy's eyes move over to a now present Jet, slumped against the wall, the lump of the bee underneath his shirt as well. Their eyes meet, and the understanding that they were in trouble dawned on both of their faces.

"When one of you screw up, you both pay the price." She continued, standing up to her full 5'3 height, and turning away, walking to the middle of the room.

"It's a simple process, really." She checked her watch, and raised her eyebrows.

"Wait." Her hand falls to her side, and turned to face both of the men on the ground, with a questionable look on her face. "Isn't there supposed to be three of you?"

"Oi look. It's the Shrimp. Never thought I'd see the day."

It all clicked to the small, blue haired woman when Gajeel's taunting deep voice echoed through the building. Without turning around, she clicked her teeth and crossed her arms.

"Of course it's you, Gajeel." She turned around and saw him leaning against the doorframe with a rather appealing smirk on his face. "It has been three years...why haven't you called?" She joked, faking an saddened look.

In her mind, he looked better than ever; his muscles had grown even more, if possible. His dangerous crimson colored eyes bored into hers, and his cool metal piercings practically called out her name. His style fit hers perfectly and if the Lady Legions didn't have a strict, _"No dating Fairy Tail men"_ policy, they might have had something. Of course, with the exception that all Fairy Tail members were douche bags.

She smiled and tilted her head at the large man eyeing her down, and took a step towards him. "You didn't think I could forget about my big bad wolf did you?" Slowly making her way towards him, the smile on her face grew and she swayed her hips suggestively.

"I just had to take care a…few things first." She added, shrugging as if it were nothing.

He then shifted his gaze behind her and noticed Jet and Droy, unmoving on the floor. Their body showed no struggle, but their eyes told a different story. He frowned, confused and looked towards the advancing woman, now closer than before.

"Let's cut to the chase here. What the hell did you do to them and how do I undo it?" He growled at her, gesturing to his two guild mates.

She raised her eyebrows, put on an innocent look, slowly walking around to his back. "What makes you think I had something to do with this?" She whispered, ghosting her fingers around his broad shoulders, then moving them down his back. She knew what the she was doing to him and she knew that it was working, by the way he was struggling to keep his composure and self-control. His fists were clenching together and a groan moved through his throat.

"I'm serious…what…did you do to them, shrimp?" He asked through gritted teeth, withholding another groan when she ran her fingers down his stomach and onto his abs. "I'm giving you only one chance to tell me."

He also knew what she was doing to him, because she had done it to him before. The last time they went face to face, she had used this, seductiveness, against him and of course he had lost.

For one reason or another, she was the only one who could do this. Maybe it's because of the fact that he couldn't have her, or maybe because he had a score to settle with her. But in the end, he knew that she was here. Although they haven't seen each other for three years, he could still recognize her scent anywhere, and still go crazy.

She stood on the tip of her toes and leaned close into his ear and whispered silently and slowly. "I…haven't the slightest clue…as to what is wrong with them." She smiled when she nipped his ear and knew that he was wearing thin.

As fast as lightning, he spun around and trapped her small frame against the metal wall, looking down at her with half lidded eyes. A growl erupted from his chest like a volcano coming to life. Playing her cards correctly in this situation, she looked into his dangerous red eyes. She bit her lip slightly and slowly stood up to reach the side of his face. Her minty breath tickled the tiny hairs on the side of his face and she whimpered his name hauntingly.

"..._Gajeel_..."

That's all it took for him to snap and his breath hitched in his throat. He dived towards her lips, needing to feel hers against his. To him, it had been too long since he had last saw her, and maybe it was lust, but he couldn't wait to see her again. His inner dragon roared up and demanded to be noticed.

But before he could get that reliving feeling he had been waiting three and a half years for, his body jolted with electricity and his face twisted up into a pained expression. He shook violently and fell to his knees, as the unexpected 1,000 volts coursed through his veins. His strangled gasp was heard throughout the building, and it snapped Levy out of a trance that she didn't know that she was really in. She hadn't even noticed the warm presence of his body, disappear, when he fell down to the ground.

"Lev, I swear to god if you didn't hurry up and take him out and to quit making goo-goo eyes at each other, I was going to hurl on the both of you." She looked up to see her blonde, best friend and sister, putting down the Taser 460, another one of Levy's creations. She had a jokingly sick look on her face, and she raised her eyebrows questionably.

"What even was that?" She said, putting her hands on her hips, expectantly. She pretended to be her and made a love sick face. "Oh Gajeel. Take me, I'm yours!"

She then laughed out loud when her face busted into about 50 different shades of red and she looked away, trying to avoid her gaze.

"S-Shut up, Lucy." She stammered, "I-I was just doing my job! Quit making fun of me!" She growled and Lucy's chuckles only grew.

"Yeah, yeah." Lucy finally complies and sighs, looking around the room. Her eyes land on Jet and Droy, lying motionless on the ground, then she looks to a twitching Gajeel, still feeling the effects of the electricity.

"Nice job here, Lev." She compliments, putting her hands on her hips, hooking her fingers through the small black loops on her belt.

Her blonde hair was set in a high pony tail and tied tightly. Her brown eyes were outlined in black mascara, and her lips were a natural pink color. Her skin was basically considered flawless, with the exception of dirt and grime from earlier missions. She wore a tight black long sleeved shirt, which perfectly supported her rather large breasts. She wore a small heart chain around her neck, along with pitch black gloves on and wore black short-shorts.

Her body was a perfect hour glass figure, but not too skinny either. She was a young woman at the age of 21, 5'6 height and had skills that could give a grown man a run for his money. Everyone from the Lady Legions gave off a 'don't-mess-with-me-I'm-badass' kind of look, and Lucy just wasn't any different.

Levy rolled her eyes and turned around, walking towards the exit with her arms crossed, but her face still red. "Yeah, thanks. But it's nothing compared to what you did to that Grey kid. Man, was he surprised."

Lucy smirked cockily at the memory, as she bent down to the giant man's level. "Yeah your right. I did screw him up pretty badly, huh?"

She rummaged through his pockets until he finally found what she was looking for, and snatched it up. Then she leaned down to Gajeel's face, and cocked her head to the side.

"Y—you're…L-L-Luc…"Gajeel tried to speak, but the volts of electricity forbid him from doing so. His body scrunched together in a ball, twitching every few seconds. Lucy smiled wickedly sweet at the struggle, and she waved the keys in front of his face.

"Tell _Grey_ that I'm somewhat sorry for beating his ass so thoroughly last time. I hurt the kid pretty badly…I knew I should have gone easier on him. But, hey. That mission was worth 200,000 jewels." She winked at Gajeel before standing up and walking towards Levy who was waiting at the door.

Her hair swayed back and forth, and black knee-high boots clicked the floor with every step she took, making her seem even more badass.

"Don't wait up for us." She called out, twirling the truck keys on her finger. "We'll just take the truck for you guys. No need to thank us."

The sound of Gajeel's occasional sound of movement mixed with the sound of Jet's and Droy's groans, as they tried to scream out in rebellion. They struggled to move and to stop them from taking their hard work away like this, but was clearly impossible.

Through their angry shouts, the electricity pumped through their bodies mercilessly and they yelled out in pain, because they had forgotten to not show any signs of emotions. Their bodies' jolted and twitched, as pain ran through them and they tried to stick it out.

Lucy's growing smile was matched by Levy's smile, as they both walked out of the exit, and into the awaiting truck full of pieces of blue broken lacrima.

Lucy got in the driver's seat, while Levy climbed into the front seat. Once they both shut the doors, Lucy looked to Levy and sighed.

"That was a lot of work. You know…hauling all those pieces of lacrima in the back. We deserve that 100,000 jewels, huh?"

Levy couldn't contain her laughter and she covered her mouth, giggling. "Y-Yeah! W-We deserve it alright."

Lucy let out a howl of a laugh herself, and put the key in the ignition. When the engine roared to life, Lucy pressed as hard as she could on the accelerator and off they shot down the road, the sounds of their joyous screams fading away with the farther they went.

* * *

"Can I get another, Elfman?" The pink haired man asked, raising his hand to get the bartender's attention. "And this time, with a little more fire. I could barely taste it last time."

The bartender scowled at the insult, and raised his eyebrows at the man. "You're lucky I didn't spit in it last time, salamander." He snatched up the cup by the young man, and turned to get him a refill. "You never know, after all."

The pink haired man chuckled deeply and shook his head, clearly amused. "Ah, you don't want me telling Makarov that, now do you?"

Elfman rolled his eyes at the annoying man, and slid the full cup in his direction. "Enjoy it, Natsu. If you tell, it might be your last."

Natsu caught the cup in his left hand and laughed to himself, taking a huge swig of the fire with a grin on his face.

When he lifted his arm to take a drink, you could tell that he was lean, but had a muscular build. It was obvious to everyone, but even more noticeable to the ladies. He appeared to be a young man of average height of 5'10-5'11, with a slightly tanned tone, dark black eyes and was the owner of the softest, pink spiky colored hair in all of Earth Land. He wore a sleeveless, gold trimmed black waistcoat that was left open and untucked, exposing his bare chest. He also had on white knee-length trousers, a thick black wristband on his left wrist, black open-toed sandals and a very special, bright white scale-patterned scarf.

"Natsu! Natsu!"

He turned around to see his blue partner flying towards him very fast, with a crumbled scroll in his hands. He smiled at the blue cat, noticing the paper in his hands.

"Happy! Did you get a good one, buddy?" He asked the blue feline, as he landed on the brown counter, panting heavily.

"I…I got one alright! It's worth…500,000 jewels! That's a lot of fish!" He exclaimed excitedly, his smile growing bigger with each passing second. Natsu's face grew brighter at the mentioning of that much money, and nearly choked on his drink.

"500,000 jewels? Happy! Boy did we hit the jackpot!" He grinned, standing up and reading over the paper. "What do we have to do? Take down some gigantic monster? Save a town? Beat up some bad guys?"

Happy shook his head and pointed to the paper. "It says we have to capture some girl from the Lady Legions guild. Apparently some people want her real badly to pay 500,000 jewels for one person!"

At the mentioning of the Lady Legions, Natsu frowned. "Lady Legions? No wonder this is so high paying…Happy, I don't know…they are pretty serious-"He was interrupted by Happy's whimper.

"Natsu! You are Natsu Dragneel! You can handle anything, remember? You're a dragon slayer! We've got this! Come on, plus it's too much fish to pass up!"

He pondered over the decision for a few moments before the grin that had disappeared from his face, reappeared in a second. "Yeah, yeah, your right! We've got this! What are we waiting for?"

Natsu turned to the other side of the bar, and called out to the tender. "Elfman! We've got a mission!"

"Over my dead body, squinty eyes! That mission is mine!"

Natsu turned around again to see his annoying, guild mate stalking towards him, a scowl on his face. He rolled his eyes at him, and sneered. "Well, who's got it, Ice Princess? That's right, we do! Go get your tongue stuck on a pole or somethin'!"

He stomped over to Natsu, and pointed directly at Happy, growling. "You're _stupid_ cat grabbed that mission paper out of my hands before I had a chance to turn it in! Give it back flame brain, before I make you give it back!" He threatened, narrowing his dark blue eyes.

He was shirtless and his chest was tanned and toned miraculously, showing off his built figure. He wore a grey necklace, a sword with a stone in it, and dark green, baggy pants with a brown belt. A metal bracelet with a chain was attached to the belt loops on the right side of his pants, which shook whenever he moved.

Natsu stood up and wasn't hesitant to butt heads with his dark blue haired companion. "Is that a threat, stripper boy?" He glowered at him back, and they both raised their fists, about ready to beat each other to a pulp. But before that could happen, they we're both pulled away from one another and thrown backwards. They both groaned at the sudden impact and looked to see who had dared to have done that.

Standing above them was a worn-out looking Gajeel, glaring at the two idiots. His hair was a poofy mess and his skin looked darker. You could see smoke radiating off of him and smell smoke as well.

"You two think you're getting that mission?" He growled, looking at the both of them. "In your dreams. _I'm _taking it, because I have some unfinished _business_ to attend to." He said, turning to take the mission.

"Talk about unfinished business, mine are more important!"

"That's a lot of fish we could buy!"

Grey and Natsu jumped up instantly, and pounced on the large dragon slayer, tackling him to the ground, and rolling around in one big tangled mess. Grunts and growls were heard in the rumble, as punches and kicks were exchanged.

"You know," Elfman started, walking towards the fighting men, cleaning out a beer mug. "You could all go and split the money. Those ladies are tough, and with the three of you, you can take one down like a real man!" He said nodding his head, appreciating his own advice. He soon sweat dropped, and sighed when he realized that his advice fell on deaf ears.

Somehow, the small brawl managed to expand itself outwards towards the rest of the guild filled of men, and one punch lead to another, and the whole fighting scene took place. Grunts and growls filled the entire room, and the sound of fists against skin was deafening. Chairs flew, drinks spilled, tables flipped, walls were cracked—it's hard to believe that this was…normal in the Fairy Tail guild.

"Quiet, quiet down everyone. Quiet!" A small, old man yelled loudly.

His eyes were shut and his bushy, white eyebrows furrowed together in deep thought as he sighed outwardly. He was extremely short, but the table top he was sitting on gave him some leverage, to see everyone gathered in the guild hall. Once the hall was reduced to mere murmurs, and people finally settled down and put chairs and tables back on the ground, he opened his black eyes and moved his gaze around the room. The meeting that he had called earlier had begun.

Everyone knew what the topic of today's meeting was going to be; The Lady Legions. They could all tell by the stress and the anger that was apparent on the old man's face.

"I know what you're all thinking," He started out grimly, his deep raspy voice carrying throughout the room.

"A particular dark guild has us all on edge for a while now-"He was interrupted by angry shouts in the crowd, gathered to hear the man's words.

"A while? It's been forever!" A voice shouted loudly, the anger in his voice prominent.

"They've been doing this for years! Enough!" Another voice yelled coldly.

"We can't keep living like this!" A third voice added in, raising his fist in the air, growling. "Makarov, if we continue to let them slide, we won't earn any money! It's bad enough the council is watching us! The time to strike is now!"

The entire guild erupted in agreement and jumped up, pumping their fists in the air. Since this was an all-male guild, the shouts had a deep carry to them that made the hoots and hollers even more imitating.\ Makarov shook his head, growing bald spot showing visibly. His eyes showed disappointment at his children suggestive ways of approaching the situation, finally standing up.

"Yes, I know. But going about it this way is not acceptable." He stated outwardly and loud enough so he could be heard.

His deep voice shook everyone as he carried on his speech. "The Fairy Tail guild is nothing like the Lady Legions. We are family. We don't turn on one another, as I am sure they do. They are a dark guild, living off the pain, the suffering of others. We do not do away with our problems by simply beating them up! We figure out a _correct_ way of going about things, not a hostile way!"

Everyone shouted in agreement at the small man's words, and pumped their fists in the air. They stomped the ground, and slapped hands with one another, as f the speech were giving them life and energy.

"Things will get better, I can tell you that now." He said in a slightly calmer voice. "And the Lady Legions _will_ pay for what they have done, in the past and now. But now is not the time. We are the Fairy Tail guild! And we will get passed this!" He stuck up is index finger, and thumb, igniting the crowd into cheers and hollers. Others joined him in sticking up their symbolic gesture, while others talked loudly.

After Makarov finished, Grey stood up and brushed himself off, groaning slightly. "Aw man. Whose foot was it that hit my jaw?" He grumbled, rubbing his jaw that was throbbing painfully.

Gajeel used the railing to support his weight and stand, arching his back. "Quit complaining. One of you two _idiots_ smashed a chair against my back." He groaned, and rubbed his soar side, grimacing.

Elfman chuckled at their pain, and shook his head, smiling. "I wouldn't be calling them the idiots, Gajeel. Seems like it's just you and Grey." Gajeel and Grey spun around to face the bartender, frowning.

"What do you mean it's just us two? Natsu's the biggest-"Grey stopped, his mind finally catching up to what Elfman was referring to. He let out loud exasperated sound, and clenched his fists together angrily.

"Damn it!" He shouted, and turned towards the door, hearing a laugh and a flash of pink and blue disappear outside. "Flame Brain isn't getting that reward, I am!"

They both spun towards Elfman, and growled. "Do you have any more-"They were interrupted by two more slips of papers being brought up in front of their faces.

Elfman shrugged, and a grin appeared on his face. "A real man needs backup when facing these chicks. I printed extra in case some idiot, like Natsu, decided to go about it alone. Plus, this'll be interesting."

Gajeel snatched the paper and bolted out the door, followed by Grey muttering a thanks before disappearing behind the guild doors.

The chase was on.

* * *

_Okay that's a wrap for the first chapter! I think I did a good job on this one, and I really hope that you guys liked it as an introduction to the rest of the stories. _

_I even added a little LevyxGajeel in the beginning to start things off…your welcome. And obviously they had a past, as like most of the characters in this story do. (Or will) _

_Anyways, before I get in too deep with telling you all about the rest of this book, I'm going to go! Remember, if anyone has any suggestions, put it in the review box! ALSO, if you noticed any errors, just PM me please! I'll change them. _

_-BookBearer_

_Question: Would you rather have longer chapters but a longer waiting time, or shorter chapters and a shorter waiting time? _

_(Answer in the review box!)_


	3. Chapter 3

_Such a long wait, whoops. Sorry for the longest waiting update in the history of updated chapters—I'm such a terrible person, lmao. _

_Anyways, here's the next chapter, I hope you all enjoy, as always. _

_-BookBearer_

* * *

"Lu-chan, where are you going _this_ time?" The brunette spoke out of the left side of her full mouth.

Her small figure was lying back in the wooden chair, her light body leaning back on only two of its legs. She rocked back and forth in the seat as she chewed and spoke, her balance incredibly stable for someone multitasking all three actions at once.

They had collected the reward from the requestor, who was more or less surprised to be face to face with two respected members of the Lady Legions. He was expecting the men from Fairy Tail to return for the reward; not them. Nonetheless, the man was smart enough to not question anything and handed them the reward with shaky hands and a fearful smile.

They both had gotten back to the guild before sunset, driving the bumpy truck into the front of the building. Lucy peeked her head out the truck, extending her hand out of the window and onto the small metal plate. As soon as her warm hand met the cool metal, it clicked, once, twice, then once more, before the large iron gates painfully creaked open. And as soon as they pulled in, the gates behind the truck slammed shut, sealing them safely inside as always.

Only members of the Lady Legions were allowed in, them all entering their own handprints and thumbprints. This type of security procedure was specially made by the Master of the dark Guild herself. And if your handprint didn't match any in the base, then you might as well consider yourself fried.

_Literally_.

She had charmed it to blast scorching hot flames at those unknown. It came right from her power source- especially for the occasional Fairy Tail member who lost their minds for a moment and decided that it was a good idea to confront the Guild because they were being 'unfair', or how they 'stole' his months rent. Obviously, these guys weren't the _sharpest_ tools in the shed.

"Just…out," Lucy replied, her hands flying around her scattered supplies, packing them all quickly in her black bag. The front pockets were stuffed with the essentials; water, food, some soap (in case she was out for more than a day), her custom made pocket knife, her keys and the _essential_, worn-down scroll.

"Oh yeah?" Levy questioned, finally sitting up and raising her eyebrows. She pointed with the abnormally large, half eaten turkey wing in her hand, "Well, it doesn't look like you are just going out for a stroll around the block."

Lucy just shook her head and continued packing, pausing only momentarily to think about what she was forgetting, before quickly returning to pack.

"Are you going to answer, or just ignore me?" Levy asked again.

When the blonde didn't answer, Levy frowned, this time putting down the piece of meat back on the table and standing up.

"Lucy." Levy said finally, her tone more serious. When Lucy paused, she walked up to her and placed her hand on her shoulder, turning her around to look her in the eyes.

"Seriously," Her eyebrows knitted together, brown eyes showing genuine concern for the blonde.

Levy may have been a part of the vicious Lady Legions and may have done some pretty ruthless things in the past— but she cared for Lucy like a sister. _Everyone_ in the guild did; they all were sisters to each other. It was one thing to go on a dangerous mission _together_, but it was another to go on a dangerous mission _alone_ with no one to have your back.

"Lucy…I don't know. What if something happens while you are away—"

"Levy."

"Anything can happen! Did you know that 30,208 accidental deaths occurred last year _alone_? You are the clumsiest person I know, we might as well start planning your funeral service!"

"Levy!"

The bluenette shrugged, crossing her arms. "What? It could happen."

Sighing, Lucy out down her belongings and gave a warm smile to her best friend. "I'll only be gone three days—_tops_. Please don't worry."

"But—"

Lucy squeezed her small shoulders. "_Tops_."

Levy raised an eyebrow, "You promise?"

"Promise."

"Alright, alright." Levy hesitantly agreed, backing up to give her blonde friend some room to finish packing for whatever trip she had planned. She knew it was best not to pry too much into this; even Lucy had some boundaries she needed to keep intact. Plus, Lucy was one of the strongest mages they had in the Lady Legions…she would manage.

Walking back over to the table, Levy picked up the large chicken wing and pointed it back at her. "But if you are even a day late, I swear to _god_ I will kick your fat ass, Lucy." She warned, taking another huge bite out of the cooked meat.

Lucy snorted at the offending comment, picking up the last of her items and putting it in the bag. She grabbed the leather handle and swung it over her left shoulder. "At least I _have_ an ass."

Narrowly dodging the large chicken wing being thrown at her head, Lucy let out a howl of laughter. Her best friend's sudden tomato red face was just too funny for her _not_ to laugh. Lucy gripped the leather pack and darted towards their door, dodging numerous flying objects while she ran.

"You bitch!" Levy yelled angrily, shaking her fist in the air.

"Bye! I love you too!" Lucy called out behind her as she ran towards the gates of the guild, laughing at her friend. Levy truly was one of a kind, and she wouldn't want anyone else.

* * *

Lucy turned the map upside down and staring at it, confused.

"What the heck?" She growled, reading over the map once more. She had been walking for hours now, following the map in her hands, but seemed to be getting nowhere besides getting herself lost. All she could see was thick vegetation, trees, pesky rodents and more annoyingly tall trees. The forest floor seemed to get longer with every step she took, expanding forwards and outwards.

Reading over the map again, it pointed out that she was going in the correct direction. The large arrow on the paper pointed forwards, the magic inside it leading it the way Lucy was supposed to go. This map cost the Blonde quite a bit of money; supposedly being the map to point out where her destination that she'd been looking for _years_ for, was.

"_Let us see what I may have." The old shop clerk croaked, turning around to his shelf and lifting up a large box. He had to stand up on his tippy-toes to get it down, and grunted softly as the box weighed him down. Once he had the box, he turned around and dropped it on the counter separating Lucy from himself. _

_He shuffled through the box, pulling out its containments and setting them aside. The items inside seemed to be endless as he pulled them out, causing Lucy to wonder how much stuff really was in that box. He pulled out a plethora of items; reindeer hooves, shiny rings, necklaces, pouches, sharp teeth of some sort, multicolored (quite pungent smelling) elixirs, mushrooms, sorted herbs and leaves, gems, ragged daggers, small pints of blood, candles and even a few fresh looking skulls. _

_Suspicious, (and a little concerned for her own wellbeing…), Lucy was about to turn and make a run for the exit, but the man suddenly jerked up and held a scroll in his hand. The scroll was very old and looked like it would rip at any time, layers of dust coated the paper and the wood of the scroll seemed to be degrading. _

"_Ah," The man said as he held the scroll, his facial expression beaming. His blue eyes were wide and seemed to be looking at the scroll with excitement, even though a grey haze covered them and left him sightless. "Here it is." He said, blowing on the scroll so the dust would fly off of it. _

_Tapping his hand on the counter, he managed to make his way to the register, Lucy following silently behind. As soon as his hand touched the cool metal of the register, his head popped up and locked eyes with the blonde, unaware of his action giving her goosebumps. _

"_This is what you desire," He said, tapping on numerous buttons on the register, each making a clicking sound. The sounds echoed hauntingly throughout the empty, quiet store and seemed to surround the two, ringing. The man face went cold, his voice scratchy voice going in sync with the tapping;_

"'_Tis is what you need, my dear,_

_So listen to me now and hear this clear, _

_Once you find yourself on this path,_

_There is certainly no going back._

_This road ahead is long and dire, _

_Filled with the rage, beauty and the fuel of fire,_

_While you may get what your heart desires, _

_The consequences will be higher. _

_Take this scroll now and leave, _

_Let it serve and act as your key, _

_Unlocking and opening all doors ahead, _

_There will be strong love and thick bloodshed. _

_So now that I've told you what it holds_

_Won't you take and use this scroll?"_

_As soon as the man finished reciting the passage, the clicking of the register stopped and everything was silent once more. Tenseness filled the air, as the man waited, staring blankly at the blonde. _

"_Uh," Lucy sweat dropped, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly, "I don't know what _that_ was all about, but if it'll help me get to where I need, then sure. How much?" _

_The man's aura grew softer as he smiled, his lips peeling back to show missing and blackened teeth. _

"_6,000,000 jewels." _

"_W-What!" Lucy choked, coughing on the air she was breathing in. As soon as she was able to manage her breathing once more, she glared at the man. _

"_Don't you know who I am?" She asked, astonished at such a price. No one ever asked such a price from the Lady Legion's guild—this man was lucky she wasn't beating it out of him and getting it for free._

_The elder shrugged nonchalantly, "Oh I know who you are, Lucy __Heartfilia__."_

_Lucy paused and stared, shocked at the man who knew who she truly was. She didn't even know this guy…how did he know about her last name? This shop was on the outskirts of town and none ever visited here and it seemed like he never left either._

_Lucy growled, seeing as she had no other option but to pay the man his price. She shoved her hand in her satchel, digging through it for the jewels. "Fine."_

_The blind man's face brightened and he smiled once again as he was handed the money in chunks and rolls. "Thank you for your business."_

But at the current moment, the map seemed to be useless and a waste of money. She cursed the man silently in her head for ripping her off, and then cursed herself for falling for such foolishness.

"This stupid map," She growled, kicking at the ground. "What did it get me? A loss of 6,000,000 jewels, miles and miles away from the guild and a stinking paper cut!"

The sun was going to be setting very soon and the map hadn't changed at all. It continued to point forwards in the direction she had been going this _entire_ time and she was getting sick of it.

Lucy stepped over a log and ducked under a large tree branch. Maybe this map was broken. Maybe she wasn't using it correctly or maybe it was just out of magic. The blonde slumped against a nearby tree, groaning and covering her face with her hands. "I hate everything."

Considering the terrible luck she had been having these past few hours, she started to think that she should ditch the darn thing and find her own way around, seeing as it didn't work. Picking up the map again, he was just about ready to rip the piece of shit in half, but suddenly the arrow turned around and pointed towards her.

Lucy frowned, confused. "Wait…what?"

"…-great going, Natsu! You got us lost again!"

"Not huh!"

"Yeah huh!"

"Not huh!"

"Yes huh!"

"This map says we're going in the right direction, we just have to keep following it!"

"That map is crap."

"This map cost us a _fortune_! Don't disrespect it, you'll hurt its feelings!"

Lucy shot up instantly and whipped around towards the voices. Acting fast, Lucy rolled the scroll back up and shoved it back in her pack, taking a few steps back before sprinting towards the tree and jumping on it, climbing. Once she was a good height up to not be seen, she slowed her breathing and rapidly beating heart down, forcing herself to calm down and merge into her surroundings.

Minutes later, the owner of the two voices came into sight, walking right under Lucy. They seemed to not notice her and continued walking.

The floating cat rolled its eyes, "Yeah, whatever, all I know is that the price we paid could have bought us a whole lot of fish!"

"Yeah, but how else are we supposed to find this, 'Lucy Ashley'? These girls are slippery and are easy to get away."

Alarms went off in Lucy's head as soon as she heard her name leave the man's lips. Why were they looking for her? And why did her stomach flutter when he said it? Her thoughts continued to run through her mind as they continued to pass her tree. Whoever these people were, they weren't very good at keeping information quiet and finding targets.

As soon as Lucy thought she was home free, the man paused and stopped walking, looking around quizzically.

"What is it, Natsu?" The talking blue cat asked, floating above the pink haired man.

Natsu lifted his head, closed his eyes and took in a huge whiff of the air. "Something…something smells _different_."

"Different?" The cat asked, as it scratched its head, "Different how?"

Natsu took another whiff of the air, trying to pinpoint what that smell was. Whatever the smell was, it was strong and coming from nearby. It was alluring…it was strange. "Different as in…as in..."

Natsu's eyes snapped open and his entire body stilled. "Someone is here."

Before the flying cat had time to ask any more questions, pain shot through his body and he was sent backwards. Tears prickled at his eyes and began to flow freely as he screamed in pain, his body lit up with excruciating shocks of agony. From his left wing, a small and sharp dagger pinned him to the tree trunk behind him, with deadly accuracy. Blood from his wings dripped down and stained the white of the feathers, dripping down to the light blue of his fur.

"Happy!" Natsu screamed, running towards the Exceed.

Before he could reach him, a large thump on the forest ground was heard and steel-toed boot whipped around and met his concerned face, kicking him backwards and onto his back. Natsu grunted in pain as the steel of the boot met his cheek, but turned his head upwards to glare at his attacker.

Lucy met his glare with equal intensity. "Looking for me?"

The pink haired man growled, suddenly pissed off. Natsu exhaled sharply, pushing off of one foot, immediately rushing the blonde bandit. He flung a fist out towards her, but the attack was easily avoided. Almost quicker than a blink of an eye, Lucy swiveled out of the way of Natsu's fist, landing a blow on the man's unguarded ribs. It was obvious that she was holding back significantly, but she made sure that the man felt his mistake.

Natsu huffed as he felt the hit to his side. He turned back around, Lucy still on the defensive. Natsu didn't hesitate, charging again, sliding his feet at the woman, firing away his fists. The blonde blocked each hit with her arms, or dodged out of the way. As irritation started to ebb away at Natsu, his foot work became sloppy, his blows unrelenting. It drove Lucy to take steps back, Natsu following close behind.

Swiftly, Lucy swiped her leg at Natsu's ankles, kicking with more force. Natsu slammed back first onto the dirt ground, being brought back to a more sensible frame of mind as the air was pushed from his lungs temporarily. Lucy brought her fists down, stepping closer to the laying figure, looking down on the man. Natsu was panting, his cheeks slightly flushed from over exertion.

"Looks I've found myself quite the hot-head." Lucy taunted, her brown eyes now glittering with delight and amusement.

Natsu let out an inhumanly growl as he felt his temper clicking away. Okay so, maybe his opponent _was_ a girl, but that didn't mean he was going to go easy on her any more. She had hurt Happy. Lucy Ashley was a wanted criminal in his eyes and she needed to be brought in.

Natsu pushed himself up, his arms holding him up from behind. He inhaled and exhaled deeply, pushing back up from the dirt, brushing off his shorts. He took another deep breath, settling himself. Lucy smiled more to herself as he saw the man get ready for another round. This…was getting interesting.

"Alright," Lucy clenched her fists a few times, "Let's change it up a bit. This time, you be on the defensive." She quickly dropped into a different stance, this one making Natsu a bit nervous, even if he'd never admit it. Before he could even confront the woman about treating this like a game, she darted at him.

The dragon slayer barely had time to put his fists up to block a hit before Lucy began attacking him with professional precision. Natsu stepped back hastily, trying to put some distance between him and Lucy's fists to get his bearings. But Lucy was quicker, swiveling around the boy, landing an open handed hit in between the boy's shoulders, hitting with the butt of her hand. She was clearly toying with him and it was getting on his last nerves.

Natsu stumbled forward at the impact, nearly losing his footing. But as she whipped around, he threw out a fist blindly, stunned when it actually hit something.

Lucy let out a puff of air as the right side of her chest was hit by his fist. His fist landed on her right breast, sending her backwards. Lucy half stumbled, quickly gaining her bearings again. She paused and looked down at her slightly moving gland then back at the pink-haired moron, her mouth slightly agape.

Natsu's eyes widened in disbelief at the fact that he actually hit a woman and also in fear as he looked into the blonde's brown eyes. His neck and ears instantly flared up in red hot heat, as the memory of his fists hitting her chest kept replaying in his head. He could still feel its softness, (even_ through _thefabric_)_, on his hands and he felt like such a _pervert_ for it.

This…is why he didn't fight women.

She growled, her playful demeanor suddenly vanishing and replaced with the oh-so famous Lady Legion's aura. Her face darkened, contorting in an all - consuming anger and disgust. Her eyes seemed to cut right through Natsu, narrowing dangerously.

"You sick bastard."

"I am so s-sorry-"

Natsu cursed under his breath as he struggled greatly to back away from the new onslaught of attacks that now rained down on him. She leaped at Natsu swinging out an arm to punch him. Natsu ducked under the swing and retaliated with instinctive jab to Lucy's ribs.

Lucy grunted at the blow, sending another prang of guilt into Natsu's chest. Pushing the thought aside, he swung half-heartedly at the woman but Lucy quickly parried the blow and kneed Natsu in the stomach.

Natsu fell to the ground and Lucy seized his opportunity to kick the man in his side, knocking the breath straight out of his chest. He rolled over in the dirt, huffing, trying to collect himself once more.

"Is that what you do?" She asked, her words suddenly harsh and venomous. "You crop a feel when someone isn't looking? What a scumbag." He tried to refute, but a firm kick from her black boots to his ribcage made him save whatever breath he had left.

"That's disgusting." She continued, letting out an airy chuckle. "What are you, twelve? What, jerking off in your bedroom with tissues and a handful of lotion isn't enough for you anymore?"

She shook her head, turning around to grab the backpack and leave, now done with their little fight. "A joke, your Fairy Tail Guild is, Pinky. You are from Fairy Tail, right? I really thought you guys, or _you_ at the very least, were different. But in reality; you guys are just a bunch of sex-addicted morons. It's sad, reall—_mph_!"

She was stopped, midsentence, as she was tackled from behind. She hit the ground with a hard thump, this time knocking the wind out of her own chest. The impact was so hard, that she had to fight the black dots that peppered her vision.

Natsu got off the woman and backed up, this time, feeling no remorse for tackling the woman. She had insulted his guild, his _family_…and no one does that and gets away with it.

"Say what you want about me, but don't you _ever_ speak about Fairy Tail like that. We are family. Its damned well more than you'll ever know." He shot back at her angrily, his body temperature quickly rising the more he got fired up.

"You call that bloodthirsty guild of yours a home? A family? You say our guild is terrible, you'd better take another look at yours; you all are no better than selfish animals who fend only for themselves."

He felt his chest tighten as anger begin to speak for himself. "I'm surprised your Master still keeps you around. She's heartless, cruel, and evil. She uses people to do her dirty work—and you're no different. I may not know you, but I have a feeling you could do _so_ much better. She's probably using _you_ right now to steal something for her own keepsake. You're a _pawn_ in her sick game—"

A strong kick to the jaw silenced the raging dragonslayer, sending him backwards.

"Fuck you." The angry blonde hissed at him.

Rubbing his aching jaw, Natsu looked back at the blonde, the red hot fire burning bright in his onyx eyes. After a moment, a cocky smirk formed on his lips, "Oh I know you want to so badly."

That's all it took to make the blonde snap, let out a fierce battle cry and sprint once again at him. They fought back and forth, sending punches here and kicks there, and it was basically a mashup of limbs going at it until someone faltered.

Natsu moved to defend his face, a sudden blow was delivered to his exposed ribs, and vice versa. In a moment of desperation, Natsu stole one of Lucy's own moves, swiveling on one foot, turning away from the angered woman. Lucy stumbled forward slightly when she hit nothing. The man took this as an opportunity and swung a knee at Lucy's back. He held back, (it was the least he could have done, he _did_ accidently touch her boob), but it was still enough for Lucy to huff out an audible breath at the hit.

Gaining momentum and turning around dangerously quick, Natsu targeted Lucy's feet with a kick. Lucy almost didn't see the impending hit. Slowing her movements momentarily, Natsu took advantage and twisted on the tip of his left foot, aiming to deliver a roundhouse kick to Lucy's side.

Acting fast, she ducked and dipped, kicking against Natsu's ankles, swiping the man's feet out from under him. Natsu instinctively flailed his arms out as he fell with a shout, grabbing onto the nearest thing, which just so happened to be Lucy's arm.

Natsu dragged her down with him as his back hit the dirt ground again. Lucy stopped herself before she landed completely on the man, her forearm hitting the ground near Natsu's head to halt her downward motion. Natsu still had a hold on Lucy's arm, which was on the other side of Natsu's head, pinning the dragon slayer's hand to the ground. Lucy sat, straddling one of the man's legs.

Their noses were only a breath away as they both looked at each other, eyes narrowed and anger still radiating off of them at the earlier exchange of words. Natsu was surprised that he grabbed onto Lucy, but once he realized their current position, he felt his cheeks heat up slightly. He silently cursed under his breath at his body's reaction to her close proximity.

By now both of them were panting, trying to catch their breath. They just stared at one each other, daring the other to look away before they did themselves. It was like a contest, and both of them were determined to win. Neither one was going to back down anytime soon.

But…even through their little staring contest, they could both feel that there was something more. Thick, almost warm, settling in the bottom of their stomachs as they stared at the other. Maybe because they had actually found an equally as strong opponent. Maybe. It was something…different that's for sure.

This fight was definitely not like either of them expected; Lucy honestly thought that the pink-haired male didn't have it in him to beat her, much less knock her to the ground. The same went for Natsu, he could still barely comprehend the fact that she was as strong as he was. Both physically and in hand to hand combat strategy, she definitely didn't look the part.

"Uh…" Natsu spoke, the tense atmosphere between them making him speak low, "I'm sorry I touched your boob."

"You dick," She breathed, her chest rising and falling as she spoke, catching her breath from their little sparring match. "...just don't mention it."

Natsu opened his mouth to say something—

"_Get away from Natsu y-you…you weirdo!" _

The blue cat swooped down from the sky as fast as he could, his wing still badly injured. He was flapping lopsided, but it didn't stop him from diving down low, closing his eyes and hoping to Mavis for the best.

His body collided with the right of the blonde's head, knocking her aside and off of the puckered up pink-haired dragon slayer below. She fell off with a gasp of pain, grasping her head as she curled into a tight ball, silently cursing the blue cat to the deepest, hottest part of hell.

"Fuck!" She cursed, rubbing at her head frantically, trying to relive the headache that was already starting to form, and pounding relentlessly. She opened one glaring eye at the cat, noticing how the cat didn't look so good either from its earlier wound.

"Oww…" Happy groaned, rubbing the top of his head. "She sure does have a thick skull."

"_Shut it you stupid cat_!"

Natsu blinked and sat up at the sound of the Exceed's cry of pain. He shook his head and ran over, quickly scooping up the blue cat and cradling him in his bruised arms.

"Lucky, buddy, are you okay?" He asked worriedly, looking at him up and down, checking for wounds. He inwardly scowled at the bright red opened gash running from the top of his left wing all the way to the edge. The damage the dagger had done was painfully obvious; the red of his blood dripping, staining the cloud white color of his wings.

"Aye," Happy replied weakly, trying to block out the throbbing pain in his wing. It hurt like hell, he and Natsu both knew it, but Happy refused to let it show.

"W-What about you? Did she scruff you up too badly?"

At the question about his own health, it seemed as if the pain in his own body finally caught up with his brain, the feeling of the harsh beating intensifying by one-hundred percent. He fell forwards slightly, wincing at the white hot ache throughout his body.

He could feel certain parts beginning to bruise over, his legs burning from the strain he put them through fighting Lucy. His ribcage continuously replayed feeling the hard steel toe of Lucy's boot hitting it with such force, he was sure a few were cracked or broken. Every time he took a breath, a sharp stab of pain radiated throughout his chest.

"Ah," Natsu sighed, pushing aside his own tenderness for a moment. "S-She barely scratched me."

At the mentioning of her name, he turned to confront the blonde for what she had done to Happy. She was struggling to pull herself up on a nearby tree branch, groaning in pain as she did so.

"I've always-…" She growled out pointing in the direction of Natsu and Happy. "…always fucking hated cats."

Happy grumbled in response as he was picked up by the dragon slayer. Natsu coughed tiredly and stood, a wave of nausea passing through in his vision.

"Look," He said, clearing his throat and getting straight to the point. "We still need to take you in. So, either you willingly come with us or we have to t-take you by force."

Lucy huffed, flicking a piece of hair out of her face. She thought about what she should do. She was worn out to the core, her legs could barely hold her upper body, she was pretty sure her body was spotted with blackening bruises and her head was absolutely _pounding_ from that stupid cat. Plus, from what just happened between Pinky and herself, she just wanted to get home and forget about the whole damned thing.

She had to be smart here.

"Let me sleep on it?"

Natsu shook his head, "Not uh, choose now."

She hummed, thinking it over once more before sighing. Shaking her head, she shrugged and threw her arms up. She began walking towards the pink-haired man and the blue feline.

"Fine. It's not like I have much choice in the situation anyways."

Inwardly, Natsu frowned in confusion at her simple answer. He'd expected her to retaliate, say no, punch him some more or at least shout and scream bloody murder before she'd go with them willingly. It was almost easy.

Perhaps…_too_ easy?

Especially since he was going to bring her back to Fairy Tail where she was much more likely to be cursed and shouted at.

But hey, it wasn't _his_ problem.

…Right?

"Good," Natsu declared slowly after a few passing moments. He shook off the feeling of shock and motioned her towards him. "Now come over here so I can put these handcuffs on you. Hands where I can see 'em."

She stuck both her hands out and walked towards the pair, shoulders slouched in defeat. She rolled her eyes at the man, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Sir yes sir."

Natsu turned around and reached into the brown pack they had carried earlier with them into the woods. Setting Happy against a nearby tree trunk, he kneeled (much to the dismay of his aching joints) and dug around the brown bag until his fingertips touched metal.

"Now, these aren't just any handcuffs." He explained, closing the bag and turning to face the blonde once more. "These block out any magic you might try to use. The old man gave them to me—"

His sentence was cut short when a sudden and jarring pain shot through his chest like a lightning bolt. His eyes shot open wide, his mouth falling agape. What little air he had left his lungs disappeared and he let out a breathless gasp, his nerves jumping instantly.

A stinging pain erupted from his lower region, upwards towards his lower stomach. Instinctively he released the object he was holding and his hands flew down towards the bottom of his pants, clutching for dear life.

He tried to make a noise of pain but nothing came out of his opened mouth but a squeak. His knees wobbled once more before they broke, crumpling him down towards the ground. Tears prickled at the corners of his eyes as he glanced up at the menacing woman in front of him, smiling in delight.

"Awe, I'm sorry," She bent down, sticking out her lip in mock pity, "I didn't think you actually had a lot of sensitive junk down there."

Reaching behind the distressed dragon slayer, she grabbed the handcuffs twirled them on her index finger. She watched as it spun on her finger, round and round, before trapping it in the palm of her hand.

She moved down her hands and firmly pried both of them away from his painfully throbbing crotch, (and not at all in a good way), tugging on his arm and pulling him back towards the same tree the blue cat was passed out against.

After one last firm tug, she yanked his arms behind and around the tree trunk, fastening it securely with the same handcuffs he was just about to put on her. She tightened the fastening to the point of where she was sure it pinched the skin painfully and where he needed assistance to be released. And since they were in the middle of nowhere, miles away from any sort of civilization…he was going to be here awhile.

Stepping back she placed her hands on her hips, admiring her work. She smirked at the twisted pained look on the man's face, leaning down to get to eye level with him.

"Let's call it even, 'eh?" She decided, spinning around on her heel. "You touched my boob and I crushed your balls."

She turned and began to walk, (more like _limp…_the man packed quite the punch), away from the dragon slayer. It seemed off putting to leave the poor guy there like that, but she had to admit; he'd insulted the Lady Legions; called their Master _manipulative_. As if she were _using_ all of them.

But, she'd never do that to them. Or to her.

"Later, Pinky."

She departed finally, disappearing into the thick vegetation; leaving behind the groaning idiot handcuffed and bound to a large tree next to his obnoxious, blue cat. And hopefully, not for the last time. Even if she would never admit it, a small part of her hoped to see him again.

That pink-haired idiot.

* * *

**_PLEASE READ:_**

_Okay, sorry about the wait…I wanted to add more, but I just don't have the time that I used to, lol._

_So Natsu met Lucy...hooray. The next few chapters are gonna be real fun, you guys just wait._

_Also, I was reading the comments and someone pointed out that this story is not good at all...those are the comments that really get to me and really make me want to not update anymore. I take time out of my schedule and school to update for you guys...and to get those types of comments really hurt. I know that is what I get for being online and that not everyone is nice, but it still doesn't feel good. _

_I make these scenes and these chapters all for a reason. They ALL have a purpose. Anyone notice that Natsu didn't use his dragonslayer abilities? Or that Lucy did not use her keys/whip? ALL for a reason. _

_If you don't like it, or that it doesn't 'match the anime or manga', then kindly leave. __I try to update everything equally; next thing I am updating is 'Things Change' and then 'Miss. Independent, then my AOT story._

_Thank you for reading this. _

_Until next time,_

_-BookBearer_


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